


The Way to a Man's Heart

by Longpig



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Comfort Food, Cooking, First Dates, Healing, M/M, Relationship Advice, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Uliro Week 2017, shulaz, the effing cutest, uliro
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-01
Updated: 2017-06-01
Packaged: 2018-11-07 18:49:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,814
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11064978
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Longpig/pseuds/Longpig
Summary: After Ulaz is injured saving Shiro's life, Shiro contemplates how he can show his appreciation...and maybe how he feels.





	The Way to a Man's Heart

**Author's Note:**

> This was written as a prompt fill for Uliro week! Today's prompt was Sick/Healing. Also, this fic presupposes a timeline in which Ulaz was rescued from the space taco, and would then take place sometime between Space Mall and Blackout.

Ulaz looked so peaceful floating inside the healing pod, Shiro could almost forget why he was in there, almost forget what the white medsuit was concealing. Almost.

The mission had been successful, on the whole. Ulaz, Pidge and he had been able to infiltrate the Galra outpost, and Pidge had hacked into the Empire’s network through the communications systems. The intel and files they’d been able to retrieve would be an incredible asset in the battles to come, but they had paid a price.  _ Well, Ulaz did. _ Ironically, it hadn’t been the Galra that had posed the greatest threat to them, but the local wildlife. On their way back to the Lions to make their escape, they’d been ambushed by of a pair of electrically charged lizard-bear… things. One of the creatures had released a pulse that had disrupted the connections in Shiro’s arm, making it nothing but dead weight hanging from his shoulder. While he was off-balance, the other beast had launched itself at him, snarling and flashing. Ulaz had shielded him with his body, grappling the monster while its jaws snapped barely inches away from his nose. His strength was incredible, but when it discharged as well, he fell to the ground, twitching and smoking. If Pidge hadn’t managed to scare the things off with her bayard, they would have both been done for.

Shiro’s arm had come back online after just a few minutes. Ulaz had not. He’d been in the tank for almost a quintent now, and Coran had said it would probably be that long again before he was ready to come out. He knew, logically, that there was no reason for him to visit Ulaz like this, that Ulaz didn’t know whether he was there or not. It was more for his own benefit - to remind himself that Ulaz was still here.

“Shiro?” Startled out of his thoughts, he turned to see Hunk standing in the doorway, holding a covered container of some sort. He was surprisingly light on his feet; Shiro hadn’t heard his approach at all. “Keith said you’d probably be down here.”

“What is it, Hunk? Everything okay?” 

“Uhh, yeah,” Hunk shrugged, “it’s just that you missed dinner…” Shiro could practically hear the unspoken ‘again.’ “So I thought maybe I’d bring you something.” He held out the container he’d been carrying. “Can’t have our fearless leader wasting away to nothing!” he added cheerfully. Shiro took it, feeling the warmth seep through to his hand, and peeled back the lid.

“Thanks,” he said, sincerely. He hadn’t realized how hungry he was; and whatever was inside the bowl smelled amazing.

“It’s soup! I, uh, forgot to bring you a spoon, though,” Hunk added sheepishly, scratching the back of his head. “Sorry.”

“That’s alright,” Shiro replied with a low chuckle, “I’ll just drink it.” It tasted as good as it smelled. Something about the umami flavour of the broth reminded him of home. “What’s in this, anyway?”

“Trust me, it’s probably better if you don’t know.” 

A companionable silence fell between them for a few minutes as Shiro finished his soup. His gaze returned to Ulaz, still floating serenely in the pod. Shiro wondered what home meant to him.

“So, how long are you just gonna like… moon over Ulaz and not do anything about it?” Hunk asked, breaking the silence. Shiro almost choked on his last mouthful.

“Wh-what?” he managed to sputter. “What do you mean?” Surely it couldn’t have been so obvious. Not when he barely understood his feelings himself.

“Oh come on.” Hunk rolled his eyes. “Everyone knows you’ve got it bad for him. Well, except Ulaz, maybe. And you, apparently.”

“It’s not like that,” Shiro protested feebly. “We’re… colleagues. He saved my life.” 

“Yuh-huhhh…” Hunk laughed.  “Colleagues, sure. Colleagues who make sad puppy eyes after each other when one leaves the room. “

“I do not --”

“He’s as bad as you are, y’know. ‘Oh, Shiro’s leadership brings hope to us all!’” Hunk latticed his hands under his chin and batted his eyelashes, while doing an almost passable imitation of Ulaz’s accent. “‘He’s so brave and strong and did I mention handsome?’” Shiro covered his face with a hand, somewhere between irritated and mortified.

“Okay, okay, that’s enough.” He sighed. “So I’m really that transparent, huh?” Hunk shrugged again.

“Why don’t you just, I dunno, ask him out on a date?”

“It’s not that simple… “ Shiro’s voice trailed off as he grasped for the words to explain. “I just don’t know how much of this is just me - or us, I guess, feeling indebted to each other. And then there’s the whole, uh, ‘fraternization’ thing.” He ought to be setting an example for the others, not acting like an infatuated teenager.

“Oh please,” Hunk waved his protests away with a dismissive gesture. “Lance is already trying to pick out your smush-name.”

“My … what?” Shiro blinked, baffled.

“Anyway, that’s what dates are  _ for _ , man! To figure out how you feel about someone you think you like!” 

Shiro turned away to look at Ulaz again. A small smile crept over his face.  _ A date… with Ulaz? _ Now he really did feel like a teenager again… but in a good way. His mind raced with possibilities he hadn’t allowed himself to consider before.  _ What would he even like? _ he wondered. Then, it came to him. He glanced down at the empty bowl in his hand.

“Say, Hunk… When you were all at the Space Mall, didn’t you work at a Galra food place?” He had missed out on that particular excursion, but Lance and Pidge had been telling the stories for days afterward.

“Yeah! Vrepit Sal’s! I wonder how ol’ Sal is makin’ out now…” Hunk mused with an air of nostalgia, as if he hadn’t been pressed into indentured servitude to start with.

“Do you think you could maybe… show me how to make something? For Ulaz?” Hunk’s face lit up as though Shiro had just promised him a million GAC and a puppy.

“Oh my gosh _ yes! _ ” Hunk gushed. “This is gonna be great.” He threw his arm excitedly around Shiro’s shoulder. “I know just the thing, too. The way to a man’s heart, right? Allez cuisine!” As Hunk steered him towards the door, Shiro hoped he wasn’t making a terrible mistake. He glanced back once more at the pod, and his heart fluttered. If this was wrong, well…

Quiznak it.

 

\----

 

Coran usually liked to be in attendance when a patient came out of the healing pod, but today he was curiously absent. Shiro suspected Hunk might have had a hand in that.  _ They’re probably  _ all _ in on it now. _ He tried not to think too much about the other Paladins’ interest in his love life…  _ It’s not like there’s much for them to do _ but  _ gossip when we’re not fighting Zarkon. _ He checked the ticker he’d borrowed from Coran.  _ Almost time. _ He straightened his shirt and flicked his hair out of his face, old nervous habits.

There was a sharp hiss as the tank’s seal released, and the force field surrounding Ulaz dropped. He lurched forward, unsteady, his eyes still closed. Shiro moved to catch him, pulling one long arm over his shoulder.

“Whoah there,” he cautioned, bracing himself against Ulaz’s considerable weight. “Take your time.” Slowly, Ulaz opened his eyes, looking first around the empty room, and then down at Shiro.

“Shiro,” he said, his expression inscrutable. Those solid yellow eyes made Galra damnably hard to read sometimes. “I am pleased to see you in good health.” Ulaz drew himself up to his full height, taking his weight off Shiro. 

“Me too.” 

“Were you waiting for me?” Ulaz asked, with the barest tilt of his head. Shiro felt his cheeks flush, blazing heat spreading across his face. “Oh. Are you also unwell? You appear fevered.” Ulaz remarked, sounding concerned. 

“Uh, no.” Shiro shook his head. “No, I’m fine.”  _ It’s now or never. _ “But Coran always says you should eat something after you come out of the pods, so I was wondering if -” he scratched the stubble at the back of his neck, feeling more nervous than when he’d first approached the Black Lion, “- if you’d want to get some dinner. With me.”

“A meal.” Ulaz blinked. “Yes, that seems like sound medical counsel.” _Oh god damn it._ _Am_ I _this dense too?_ Still, he’d come this far, and he was determined to see this through. 

They found the mess hall suspiciously empty; now Shiro was certain that his shipmates were colluding together. At this time of day, there were almost always a few people hanging out around the table, sharing a snack and conversation. Ulaz didn’t comment on the anomaly.

“You just have a seat and I’ll finish getting this ready,” Shiro instructed. Ulaz’s ears pricked up slightly, in what Shiro thought was interest, or curiosity; he sat down, watching him closely. Shiro took the plates he’d prepared out of the warming unit, and applied the sauce the way Hunk had showed him.  _ Here goes nothing, _ he thought as he set the first dish down in front of Ulaz, and then took the seat beside him. Shiro watched his face, trying not to look  _ too _ eager, as Ulaz picked up his fork and looked down at the food.

“This… this is  _ korial. _ ” He turned his head to look at Shiro, his yellow eyes wide. “How did you…”

“Hunk showed me.” Shiro smiled. “Is it... Is it okay?” Ulaz scooped some onto the fork and lifted it to his mouth. He closed his eyes as he chewed and swallowed, then opened them to look at Shiro.

“It is delicious.” Shiro couldn’t help but beam.  _ I owe you one, Hunk. _ “You did this for me?” Ulaz seemed puzzled. “Why?” Shiro’s face felt very warm again; his heart was pounding in his chest.

“Because… I like you. As more than a colleague,” he added, to clarify. Ulaz sat back in his chair, setting down his fork.

“Oh,” he said; then, with a dawning realization, “oh. This is a courtship ritual?”  _ Finally. _

“Yeah.” Shiro chanced a nervous grin at him. “A date. Sort of. Is that okay?” Ulaz lifted one massive hand and reached slowly, tentatively towards Shiro, until the pads of his fingers barely brushed the side of his face.

“It is very much ‘okay’.” Ulaz spoke in a low, almost purring tone Shiro hadn’t heard from him before. It seemed to resonate with something inside his chest; either that or he was just buzzing from the relief and excitement flooding through him. Shiro placed his right hand over Ulaz’s, pressing his cheek into his palm, then outstretched his left to caress the line of his jaw. “I had not dared to hope,” he murmured. “You humans are very difficult to read.”

Shiro almost laughed out loud at the irony. Instead, he drew Ulaz down for a kiss. 

**Author's Note:**

> Not pictured: Hunk giving Shiro a big thumbs-up from the mess hall doorway,
> 
> Also, I got three cavities writing this and now I have diabetes.


End file.
